Chapter 107
Chapter 107
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 107
Chapter Title: The One Who Chose a Deeply Sinful Name (3)
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He resembled Kallos so strikingly that it was impossible not to acknowledge it. Kallos usually had an icy demeanor, but when he was with Azel, his tension melted away, and he grinned like a fool—looking just like the man before him, Yuren.
From Azel's perspective, this was a profoundly disconcerting existence, a bundle of troubling elements. He shared Kallos's appearance, was a former Dragon Demon Worshipper who had chosen the name Lister and betrayed them...
*Is he really his descendant?*
Unlike Azel, Kallos had remained a renowned grand magus until his final days. It wouldn't be strange if he had descendants.
"But Kallos had no children."
"That's the official record, but things in the world don't always follow the straight and narrow, do they?"
"Hmm. If that's the case..."
"Then what?"
"You'll go bald when you get older, too."
"......"
Yuren stared blankly. Then his face flushed bright red, and he began to stammer.
"Th-that's not true! Look how thick my hair is! And even if I'm Kallos's descendant, it's been generations—does that mean I'll definitely end up bald like him?"
"...So you have been worried about it."
Azel chuckled. Judging by that reaction, it was clear he genuinely believed himself to be Kallos's descendant.
"Well, we can't verify that right now, so let's set it aside. For now, why don't you tell me about yourselves?"
"Hmm. Don't people usually introduce themselves before asking that?"
Leticia, who had been keeping her distance, asked coolly. Kairen, who had been silent, stepped forward.
"We did save you, after all. No need to be so prickly."
"...Now that you mention it, that did happen recently. Annoying as it is, looks like we're the ones starting at a disadvantage."
As Leticia grumbled, Yuren smirked.
"Well, we came here fully intending to lay everything bare, so no need to be prickly. Leticia."
"That's your stance. I had no such intention."
"Come on, you came all this way following my lead—that settles it. You tacitly agreed."
"There are times I struggle to suppress the urge to punch you, Yuren."
"And yet you do, which proves your noble spirit. Anyway... hmm. I'll start. Leticia, if you don't want to talk, just give a rough intro. I'm a former Dragon Demon Worshipper who betrayed them. I originally came from one of their talent-training institutions."
Yuren spoke openly about his past, hiding nothing. He explained how he became a Dragon Demon Worshipper and how he broke free from their brainwashing to choose the path of betrayal...
Kairen, listening quietly, furrowed his brow.
"That's too far-fetched. One day, a mysterious voice in a dream suddenly starts guiding you? And that's why you betrayed the Dragon Demon Worshippers? You expect us to believe that?"
"I know it's hard for you to accept. But it's the truth. Without the Guide's Dream, I'd still be a Dragon Demon Worshipper. Faithfully brainwashed, praying daily for the Dragon Demon King's resurrection, shedding tears of感動 whenever the executives visited to reminisce about the Dragon Emperor War and deliver their speeches."
"...Do Dragon Demon Worshippers really live like that?"
"You think I'm joking? No. Especially in the training institutions—they enforce it rigorously. Everyone takes it for granted. From childhood, they're indoctrinated with Dragon Demon Worshipper ideology, taught that anything outside it is wrong. And..."
Thorough brainwashing alone could turn humans into irredeemable zealots. But the Dragon Demon Worshippers weren't satisfied with that.
"Their hierarchy places Dragon Demons at the top, then Dragon Demon Hybrids, with humans at the very bottom. Having tasted defeat at human hands, they never truly trust humans."
One could see it from Durang, who died by Azel's hand in the recent battle. He had devoted his life to the Dragon Demon Worshippers, racked up countless achievements, and earned the right to reside in the Dark Snowfields. But that was it—he received only minimal support compared to Dragon Demon or Hybrid executives.
"No 'human' among the current Dragon Demon Worshippers possesses a Dragon Demon Armament. Humans aren't permitted the Dragon Slaying Ritual."
Only humans and Dragon Demon Hybrids could perform the Dragon Slaying Ritual. But the Dragon Demon Worshippers denied humans the stage for it.
"The conversation drifted a bit. Anyway, for that reason, they don't settle for mere brainwashing."
They laced every meal with drugs—mildly addictive substances that, when combined with certain scents, induced a trance state. During training, they plunged the children into this state and imprinted Dragon Demon Worshipper ideology deep into their subconscious.
"It's insidious. But that's not the end of it."
Every child underwent ideological verification once a month, opening their minds wide through rituals and subjecting them to magical manipulation. Enduring this during the formative years of the ego made escape from madness impossible.
"That's what happened to me. When I first had the Guide's Dream, I wanted to die."
"Why?"
"Guilt. I thought I'd committed some grave sin as a Dragon Demon Worshipper, earning temptation from an evil entity."
So he told no one about the dreams. In hindsight, that was wise. Had he spoken, the instructors would have immediately marked him as a dropout and shipped him off for human experimentation.
"From the first dream... I was different. Things I took for granted in waking life felt wrong in the dream."
People often accept illogical situations in dreams as normal. That must have been the effect. Beliefs as natural as breathing—his Dragon Demon Worshipper mindset—felt alien in the dream.
That was where the crack began. The Guide's Dream continued every night, and Yuren gradually recognized the madness consuming him, trembling in terror.
"It took ten years to resolve to escape. During that time, the Guide in the dreams taught me how to fool their eyes, hiding that I'd already broken as a Dragon Demon Worshipper."
Yuren had been classified as mage talent early and learned magic from childhood. The instructors taught only practical black magic. Some trainees learned normal magic for infiltration, but not him.
In the dreams, however, Yuren learned magic the instructors never taught. Ten years later, he had grown into a mage who could overwhelm his instructors and rival the Dragon Demon executives from the Dark Snowfields.
"I still don't know the Guide's true identity. Honestly, it creeps me out. Teaching me to summon and control demons makes me suspect it's a demon."
"That's plausible. Demons possess unfathomable knowledge and use it to destroy humanity..."
Azel said. He knew little about demons himself. Unless one was a black mage, contact was rare. But during the Dragon Emperor War, Kallos had reached out to demons for power to overcome despair, and the knowledge gained was worth the risk.
Yuren gave a wry smile.
"But still... without the Guide, I'd have been consumed as a tool for the Dragon Demon Worshippers, never knowing who I was. So believe me. Even if the Guide is a demon wishing my ruin, I'm grateful for the chance to perish as a human."
He hesitated, then added,
"...Of course, if it truly intended my destruction, I'd curse it with all my hatred at the end."
"Pfft."
Azel burst out laughing. Yuren cleared his throat and continued.
"Ahem. Anyway, the Guide's Dream said that coming here would let me meet someone worth staking my fate on—someone who'd remind me of Azel Karzark, who defeated the Dragon Demon King. Looks like it was right."
"Azel Karzark..."
Azel smiled wryly. He wondered what expression Yuren would make upon learning he was Azel Karzark himself.
Azel said,
"Honestly, it's suspicious and full of holes. The only reason to trust you is your enmity with the Dragon Demon Worshippers."
"I know it's hard to believe."
"I'm not one for conspiracy theories, but... this could all be a script by the Dragon Demon Worshippers. Right? You clashed with Nibiris and nearly died, but that's a disguise anyone could pull off."
"But I'd point out that their Dragon Demon executives nearly got wiped out by you."
"That might just mean they underestimated me. During the Dragon Emperor War, they even used the Dragon Demon King's children as bait in critical moments. No reason they couldn't sacrifice executives."
"If you suspect me that much... hmm. In my current state, I have no way to earn your trust. I admit the Guide's Dream story is shaky as evidence."
Yuren smiled wryly. Azel watched him a moment, then turned to Laura.
"Laura, what do you think?"
"...You're asking me here?"
Laura looked baffled. This hardly seemed the time.
Azel did so because he could discern truth from lies in her words. It was one more piece of evidence.